Monday Marathoning :: 2.4.13

Week one of marathon training using the Hanson's Marathon Plan and I am aliiive! Seriously, I have so much energy it's ridiculous. I thought I would be more tired and sore after this first week, but surprisingly my energy skyrocketed instead. I don't know if it's the vegan diet kicking in or just the fact that I'm excited about this marathon plan, but I truly feel great.

Here is how the past week went. I did do a treadmill run on Saturday but obviously didn't wear my watch for that. 




And onto week two! Let's hope my high spirits will continue:

I thought it was only appropriate to plan out training on top of the cupcakes I devoured this weekend. Gotta love balance.

Have you ever felt a sudden increase in energy? It's even difficult for me to fall asleep some nights, and I haven't even had coffee lately. So bizarre.

weekend happenings : 2.3.13

This weekend was, dare I say it, relaxing? Uneventful? Perhaps even boring at times? We saw "The Impossible" at the theater on Friday, which was pretty good. It got a little long after the initial events, but it was really eye-opening to see the high level of destruction that Southern Asia had to endure. When Scott and I traveled to Thailand for our honeymoon, all our travel books mentioned how the country is still rebuilding itself, and probably will be for a long time. It wasn't evident to us, but I'm sure it would have been if we had seen the "before" pictures.

I do need to say: if you are prone to motion sickness in any way, don't watch this movie in theaters. My poor husband had to leave a couple times so he didn't vomit. The camera never stops moving, which made for a queasy stomach, a fat headache, and a Friday night bedtime of 9:48.

Saturday: I had a work event in the morning, then ran some errands and ended up at my parents house for my 6 mile run. I was dreading it, but used Carrot and Cake's 6 mile treadmill workout and the miles went by fairly quickly. It ended up being only 5.8, since I had set the timer for 50 minutes and it ended with only .2 of a mile left. Fuggetaboutit.

Sunday: I care more about snails than the Superbowl (unless of course the Seahawks are in it, which almost happened but almost doesn't count so that's lame), so I did my "long run" of 8 miles and then made gluten-free vegan BEET cupcakes, since I can't seem to get enough of those buggers.

Beets are so pretty and from what I gather, are excellent for runners. Beauty and brains? Beets are the best.

I used a recipe from the Minmalist Baker, and it was spot on. I subbed in some gluten-free flours for the regular flour and melted Earth Balance for the oil, since I was out of oil.  For the frosting, I combined some of the leftover beet puree, a teensy bit of almond milk, and powdered sugar sugar. So good. So...gone.

How was your weekend? Did you eat anything delicious or do anything that you were looking forward to?

healthy, hefty vegan smoothies

I've been a smoothie girl all my life. I even wrote a post about this love in my previous blog. Lately, I have found myself craving them every single morning, despite the fact that it is the middle of winter and I have blue lips and cold hands by the time I'm done with one.

Here are three of my favorite recipes (one in the link above and the other two below). These concoctions know how to fill me up just right, lasting until a mid-morning snack or even lunch. And, they make your insides shine. Winning!

A couple notes: both of these calls for chia seeds, which I like to have been soaked in water for at least 30 minutes, if not just overnight in the blender. Also, if you don't have frozen bananas, just use a fresh one. The flavor will still be the same, but it won't be as "creamy."

#1. The green smoothie that won't make you grouchy or (Grinchy!) an hour later.

For 1 smoothie you need:
1 frozen banana
A cup of frozen spinach or a handful of fresh
1 tablespoon chia seeds soaked with 1 tablespoon water
1 tablespoon agave nectar (or preferred sweetener)
1 tablespoon peanut butter
2 tablespoons ground flaxseed 


2. The pink smoothie that will make you feel incredibly girly you'll almost want to grow a beard to maintain some balance.

For one smoothie you will need:
4 frozen strawberries
1 small cooked beet
1 peeled, segmented grapefruit
1/2 cup almond milk
1/2 frozen banana
1 tablespoon chia seeds soaked in 1 tablespoon water
1 tablespoon peanut butter
1 tablespoon agave nectar (or sweetener of choice)